Govt Mulls Extension of Freeport`s Copper Exports
24 June 2015 09:00 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Energy and Mineral Resource Ministry said that they are considering to extend concentrated copper exports of PT Freeport Indonesia. The company’s export approval letter is known to expire this upcoming July.
“We’re looking at the requirements. If it meets the requirements, we will certainly allow it,” Director General of Mineral and Coal to the Ministry of Energy, Bambang Gatot Ariyono, said Tuesday, June 23.
Other than administrative considerations, the government’s reason to consider the extension is because Freeport demonstrated its intention tobuild a processing facility and refinery in Gresik. Freeport, said Bambang, is revising the cooperation deal with PT Petrokimia Gresik, as there will be a change in placing the smelter facility to increase and enhance technology.
Freeport’s export approval letter was issued by the Energy Ministry last January 2015. The US-based company was permitted to export 580,000 tons of copper with an export duty imposition of 7.5 percent.
In the previous export approval letter, for periods July 2014-January 2015, Freeport was permitted to export 756,000 tons of concentrated copper. But the realizaton for that period was only 600,000 tons.
PT Freeport CEO Maroef Syamsuddin said he is trying to meet the actual copper export to submit for an export extension in the upcoming July. “We try to go by the rules. The letter is already prepared,” he said.
ROBBY IRFANY
